A report from the City of London Corporation warns that women working in technology and financial services face a higher risk than men of losing their jobs to AI and automation. According to the study, women in the middle of their careers, those with at least five years of experience, are often bypassed for digital roles. This happens because rigid, and sometimes automated, CV screening tools fail to account for career breaks spent caring for family. These systems also tend to focus too narrowly on specific past job titles rather than overall professional skills.

The report estimates that around 119,000 office support jobs in the tech, financial, and professional sectors will be replaced by automation over the next ten years. Since women hold the vast majority of these positions, they will be hit hardest. Researchers suggest that retraining these workers could save companies up to £757 million in redundancy costs, which are the legally required payouts for laid-off staff. By training current employees for new roles, employers could focus on a candidate's future potential instead of just their previous technical history.

The findings also highlight a serious retention problem, noting that up to 60,000 women leave the tech industry every year. Common reasons for leaving include a lack of promotions, poor recognition, and low pay. In 2024 alone, more than 12,000 digital jobs went unfilled, and the report warns that offering higher salaries will not fix the issue on its own. Experts predict this digital talent gap will continue until at least 2035, potentially costing the economy more than £10 billion in lost growth.